Rev. Dr W.G. Wickremasinghe a beloved Principal and a Mentor
In January I968, I experienced my first transition of Schools from Richmond College, Galle to a leading Government School in Negombo. Sadly many factors made me and my brother feel that it was not the right school having come out of Richmond, which had very high standards of Education and Discipline. My father in realizing our dissatisfaction decided to look for another school. One afternoon when we returned home from school, our father related to us a meeting he has had in the morning with one of his ministerial Friends, Rev. Dr. W.G. Wickremasinghe. I still remember the words of my father to my mother -"Willie said bring the boys to Carey". That is the first time I heard of Carey College and Willie Wickremasinghe, two names I will treasure till I breathe my last.
20th of March marked the 13th anniversary of my beloved
Principal's call to his Eternal Home and I am inspired to write this eulogy
with thanksgiving before God.
On the very first day at Carey, our father took us to Rev.
Wickremasinghe’s office, housed in the Principal's Bungalow. It was different
from my experience at Richmond where the Principal's Office and the Bungalow
were far apart. As my father opened the "Salon Door" in the Office, I
had my first glimpse of a middle-aged, lean gentleman dressed in a white suit
and a tie-wearing spectacle with a tender smile. The transition between two
Principals whom I always hold in high esteem became easy - From D.G. Welikala
of Richmond to W.G. Wickremasinghe of Carey - D.G.W to W.G.W.
Rev. Wickremasinghe was a strict disciplinarian. When he made surprise spot checks around the
School, there was pin-drop silence. Rev.
Wickremasinghe was my subject teacher for GCE O Level Christianity. The class
was held in the front verandah of the Principal's Bungalow while the verandah chairs
were placed in a circle which became an ideal setting for open discussions and
dialogue with him. I think my preference for circular sitting arrangement in
the classes and seminars that I conduct was learnt from Rev. Wickremasinghe. One
day when he observed that a few of us did not have our Bibles, and were
dependent on others to share their Bibles, he did not spare us from tasting two
cuts each on the palm of his cane. All he said was "Remember this, you
can't study Christianity without your personal Bible. We were all shocked! - But
I learnt a life lesson on the importance and place I have to give for the
reading of Scripture using my personal Bible.
As an Educationist, he always encouraged us to be
all-rounders. When a few of us expressed
a desire to start a pop band named "Blue Maroons" he readily extended
the fullest support to us and made us play at a few College events including a
Concert. He hired the instruments from Seac Entertainments, who was the leading
sound hiring people in the 1970s. At the
end of a very successful concert, he came to the green rooms congratulated us
and then said "Now get back to your studies"
When I received my call to God's Ministry while in School,
he was the second person apart from my parents with whom I shared my
experience. A few months later he called me to his office and asked me to share
my testimony on “What Christ means to me” at the College Day Thanksgiving
Service. Though I refused, he convinced me and my first public speaking event
became a memorable one. On Monday when I
went to school he sent a note to my class teacher wanting to see me in his
office. That was a bit worrying for me! While I stood before him he said
"Asiri, good work means more work -
and rostered me to conduct Morning Chapel Prayers which included a
mini-sermon. So it was in a Baptist School that this Methodist Preacher learnt
his ABC of preaching
I turn back the pages of my life and celebrate with utmost
gratitude before God, for bringing my teenage years under the guiding light of
Rev. Dr W.G. Wickremasinghe. To me, he
was not only a School Principal but a mentor for God's ministry that I was
heading for. The way he presented himself before us as a man of God in great
stature, always inspired and challenged me. I treasure the following words he
wrote on the 15th April 1976
in the testimonial Rev. Wickremasinghe gave me:
“I have great pleasure in recommending him as a young man
of good character who is loyal to his Christian convictions, and has the
courage to stand for Christian Principles in all circumstances”
Now it is my turn to live up to his expectations of me!
May the soul of my beloved Principal and Mentor Rev. Dr. W.
G. Wickremasinghe rest in peace and rise in glory!
Rev, Asiri P. Perera
Former President Bishop of the Methodist Church Sri Lanka
2021 March 21
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